Horse Dreams (After the Fires)

I took up an invitation to paint the landscape with a family of beloved horses in a beautiful but fragile California landscape, the iconic Mt. St. Helena and the Mayacamas mountains at the skyline. I began with plein air direct drawings and pastels and brought them home to the studio; then created a collage with a composite of remembered features from around the property. I was struck by connections between the shapes of the horses and the mountains, as well as having an intention to paint them as living pieces of the landscape, relating colors and strokes.